Life begins anew at age 58 for Bill Tierney in Mile High City

Syracuse, NY -- Bill Tierney has been the center of attention for eight months now. With all due respect, he says, it’s time to move on. Move on to the Carrier Dome and the 2010 college lacrosse season.

"I think yesterday we kind of cleared the air with my team," said Tierney, whose Denver Pioneers will visit the Dome for the first time ever at 7 p.m. today vs. top-ranked Syracuse in the season opener for both teams. "I was worried that it’s all about me. That’s over. It is us together . . . our team. We’ve gone through a lot to make it that way. It’s time to move forward."

Tierney, a Cortland State alum, shocked the lacrosse world when he left Princeton at the end of last season to become head coach at Denver, a city destined to become the lacrosse capital of the West. Princeton, thanks to Tierney, is one of only four teams to win a Division I title since 1991. The Tigers enjoy great rivalries with the other three – SU, Virginia and Johns Hopkins.

Why leave the center of the college lacrosse universe for the sport’s frontier, especially at age 58?

"It’s funny," Tierney said. "One of the things I did over the years was create a little formula of helping rebuild programs, and I did that from my high school jobs to RIT and to Princeton. The thing that was so anti-me were those middle years in Princeton where we had that great run (six national crowns in 10 years). That rebuilding thing has been my MO. This opportunity kind of fell in place with that in mind."

Upon closer inspection, it is a wonderful opportunity. Denver University, known for its powerful men’s hockey team, has decided to make lacrosse a priority and take advantage of a blossoming love affair the region has with the sport. When veteran coach Jamie Munro departed following a 7-8 2009 season marked by the dismissal of several players for disciplinary reasons, the school administration made it known that it would seek a high-profile replacement and would pay to get one.

Enter Tierney, who has been able to hire his son, Trevor, as an assistant; no longer needs to fight an Ivy League admissions board to get prospects enrolled; can offer athletic scholarships; and competes only with Air Force as Division I lacrosse forces west of the Mississippi.

"I think it was a good opportunity for Bill," said SU coach John Desko, who has butted heads with Tierney on the sideline for decades. "It’s going to be different seeing him with the Denver colors on, but I think it’s a great opportunity for him. He’s coaching with his son. The Denver area is a tremendous area to be as a family, a lot of things to do inside and outside. I think it’s just a different team with different challenges, a different academic institution, different recruiting with scholarships. I just think it’s the next step for Bill."

"It’s all that stuff," Tierney said. "The mountains, the skiing, the beauty. All those stories of me running away from Princeton are simply not true. At 58, who gets a chance in life to rejuvenate who you are and what you are? I’m like a new person. You only go around once."

Tierney says now it is time to take the next step forward and shift the focus away from him and onto his team.

"They are so great," Tierney said. "It’s just a bunch of guys who had a bad year last year, and not just in terms of the record. They are refreshed, ready to go. They’re probably a little naive. I don’t think they have an understanding yet about what it takes to be a top team, but as far as buying in, they have no fear."

They also have no scouting report. In order to get Syracuse and Jacksonville, bloating the Pioneers’ schedule to 16 games, Tierney had to forego preseason scrimmages.

"We know as much about Denver as probably you guys do," SU goalie John Galloway said. "We really don’t know much about them. The film we have doesn’t mean much because of the new coaching staff. We really have to try to understand their personnel as much as we can and be ready to adjust."

The Orange staff knows that Tierney will install the same defense that propelled his Princeton teams to the top in the 1990s. It has no idea what kind of offense the Pioneers will unveil. The word coming out of the West is the team is young and inexperienced overall but possesses a ton of potential.

"We’ve taken the first step," Tierney said, describing the things he has done to change the culture within. "Now, it’s time to take the second."

That it will be attempted against the two-time defending national champions on their home field is not lost on Tierney, who has spent several anguished hours inside the Dome even if his team has not.

"The big difference for the Denver kids is the Princeton kids knew what the Dome was all about," he said. "They always looked forward to it, but there were not many times they left with a positive result. The Denver kids, this is their first opportunity to be welcomed to what it is probably the most intimidating place in country. They’re looking forward to it because they want to be known as great program. The only way to do that is to play against the best. Regardless of what happens, they’ll walk out of there saying that’s what it’s all about."

For Bill Tierney, 58, it’s all about a new beginning, a new chance to rebuild a program into a national contender.